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Images of America: Tennessee
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park draws more visitors than any other park in the nation. The park has some of the highest, oldest, and most picturesque mountain peaks and ridges in the eastern United States and more than 800 miles of hiking trails. These mountains, rivers, and scenic gorges constitute a formidable barrier between Tennessee and North Carolina. The struggle to acquire the land for the park from 10 large lumber companies and hundreds of small landholders started in 1923 and lasted more than 15 years. More than half of the 500,000 acres acquired for the park had been logged before the park's dedication in 1940, but thousands of acres of oldgrowth forest still survive. One of the most biologically diverse regions in North America-with thousands of species of plant and animal life, including 125 species of native trees-the park was designated an International Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations in 1976 and a World Heritage Site in 1983.
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
128 pages, Paperback
First published December 6, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 10, 2025
The Great Smoky Mountains In Images Of America
Great Smoky Mountain National Park, covering 500,000 acres in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee, is the most frequently visited of America's "crown jewels" in the National Park system. The Park is a place of extraordinary beauty, with its craggy mountains and its rivers and waterfalls, together with great diversity of plant and animal life, including its famed black bears. The Great Smoky Mountains are also a rich source as well of varied human activity. Over the years the Cherokee Indians, mountain people, loggers, and tourists have left their mark on the mountains.
Steve Cotham's book "The Great Smoky Mountains National Park" (2006) offers a photographic history the people and places of the mountains beginning from the late 1800's, continuing through the official establishment of the park in 1934, and concluding in the early 1950s. Cotham is the manager of the McClung Historical Collection of the East Tennessee History Center, and his book makes broad use of many rare photographs from its archives. The book is part of the"Images of America" series of Arcadia Press, which presents much local history of the United States in appealing volumes of 128 pages of annotated photographs. I have learned a great deal from this series about American places and people, both familiar and unfamiliar to me. The Great Smoky Mountains are somewhere between familiar and unfamiliar. I have visited them several times, but briefly.
In ten chapters of annotated photos, Cotham's book gives a good sense of the scenery and people of the Great Smoky Mountains. The book opens with a short overview of farming and settlement in the region from about 1880-1900. It is followed by a chapter on the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and their Reservation which lies on the eastern boundary of the park in North Carolina. Most of these photos date from the 1930s, but they brought back memories of my visit to the Reservation some years ago.
From the early years of the 20th Century to the early 1930s, the Great Smoky Mountains were heavily logged, losing as much as one-half of their stands of virgin timber. The book offers photographs of the people, the railroads, the bridges and the heavy equipment, and the large trees involved in these massive operations. The Park was established, in part, to save the mountains from complete denuding in further timbering operations. Besides the logging, the Smoky Mountains became a haven for hikers. Harvey Broome was an early hiker who receives much attention in this book. He would ultimately become the founder of The Wilderness Society. Portions of the mountains also attracted a resort clientele, in part due to the attractions of mineral water. The resort communities which flourished up to the establishment of the Park receive documentation in two chapters of the book.
The most appealing chapters of the books are those which describe the mountain communities and their environs. The book shows a great deal of the character of mountain life, and I would have liked more. There is a consideration of the range of activities of those who lived in the mountains as well as some focus on individuals. For example, we learn about the seven Walker sisters who lived in a cabin in a mountain homestead from the 1930s to 1950s, about a lanky mountain entrepreneur, Levi Trentham (1852 - 1936) who succeeded in several ventures even though he was illiterate, and about Horace Kephart, author of a famous book about the mountain people called "Our Southern Highlanders."
Two chapters of Cotham's book "The People of the Mountains" and the "Vanished Communities of the Great Smoky Mountains" tell the story of a rugged way of life that virtually disappeared with the establishment of the Park. Another chapter about the people of the mountains, "Gatlinburg" describes the bordering towns and how they changed in character from small, rural communities to tourist destinations with the establishment of the Park.
The establishment of the park, including the efforts of community leaders in North Carolina and Tennessee, and the purchase of the lands of the mountain families, the timber companies, and other landowners is described in a chapter of the book. Sadly, the old homes of the mountaineers were little preserved and today are largely relics in the Park. A final chapter of the book describes the dedication of the Park in 1940 by President Franklin Roosevelt and takes a short look at early tourism subsequent to the dedication to the Park and the surrounding towns..
The book offers a good photographic introduction to the land and people of the Great Smoky Mountains before and at the time of the establishment of the Park. A map of the park and its landmarks and their relationship to the adjacent communities would have been useful. I used a rough map in a National Park Service brochure of the Park to get my bearings.
Robin Friedman
Great Smoky Mountain National Park, covering 500,000 acres in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee, is the most frequently visited of America's "crown jewels" in the National Park system. The Park is a place of extraordinary beauty, with its craggy mountains and its rivers and waterfalls, together with great diversity of plant and animal life, including its famed black bears. The Great Smoky Mountains are also a rich source as well of varied human activity. Over the years the Cherokee Indians, mountain people, loggers, and tourists have left their mark on the mountains.
Steve Cotham's book "The Great Smoky Mountains National Park" (2006) offers a photographic history the people and places of the mountains beginning from the late 1800's, continuing through the official establishment of the park in 1934, and concluding in the early 1950s. Cotham is the manager of the McClung Historical Collection of the East Tennessee History Center, and his book makes broad use of many rare photographs from its archives. The book is part of the"Images of America" series of Arcadia Press, which presents much local history of the United States in appealing volumes of 128 pages of annotated photographs. I have learned a great deal from this series about American places and people, both familiar and unfamiliar to me. The Great Smoky Mountains are somewhere between familiar and unfamiliar. I have visited them several times, but briefly.
In ten chapters of annotated photos, Cotham's book gives a good sense of the scenery and people of the Great Smoky Mountains. The book opens with a short overview of farming and settlement in the region from about 1880-1900. It is followed by a chapter on the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and their Reservation which lies on the eastern boundary of the park in North Carolina. Most of these photos date from the 1930s, but they brought back memories of my visit to the Reservation some years ago.
From the early years of the 20th Century to the early 1930s, the Great Smoky Mountains were heavily logged, losing as much as one-half of their stands of virgin timber. The book offers photographs of the people, the railroads, the bridges and the heavy equipment, and the large trees involved in these massive operations. The Park was established, in part, to save the mountains from complete denuding in further timbering operations. Besides the logging, the Smoky Mountains became a haven for hikers. Harvey Broome was an early hiker who receives much attention in this book. He would ultimately become the founder of The Wilderness Society. Portions of the mountains also attracted a resort clientele, in part due to the attractions of mineral water. The resort communities which flourished up to the establishment of the Park receive documentation in two chapters of the book.
The most appealing chapters of the books are those which describe the mountain communities and their environs. The book shows a great deal of the character of mountain life, and I would have liked more. There is a consideration of the range of activities of those who lived in the mountains as well as some focus on individuals. For example, we learn about the seven Walker sisters who lived in a cabin in a mountain homestead from the 1930s to 1950s, about a lanky mountain entrepreneur, Levi Trentham (1852 - 1936) who succeeded in several ventures even though he was illiterate, and about Horace Kephart, author of a famous book about the mountain people called "Our Southern Highlanders."
Two chapters of Cotham's book "The People of the Mountains" and the "Vanished Communities of the Great Smoky Mountains" tell the story of a rugged way of life that virtually disappeared with the establishment of the Park. Another chapter about the people of the mountains, "Gatlinburg" describes the bordering towns and how they changed in character from small, rural communities to tourist destinations with the establishment of the Park.
The establishment of the park, including the efforts of community leaders in North Carolina and Tennessee, and the purchase of the lands of the mountain families, the timber companies, and other landowners is described in a chapter of the book. Sadly, the old homes of the mountaineers were little preserved and today are largely relics in the Park. A final chapter of the book describes the dedication of the Park in 1940 by President Franklin Roosevelt and takes a short look at early tourism subsequent to the dedication to the Park and the surrounding towns..
The book offers a good photographic introduction to the land and people of the Great Smoky Mountains before and at the time of the establishment of the Park. A map of the park and its landmarks and their relationship to the adjacent communities would have been useful. I used a rough map in a National Park Service brochure of the Park to get my bearings.
Robin Friedman
March 29, 2019
Great little history book on an area of my home state. Filled with a ton of good pictures and a nice basic intro to this are of history. good read. Recommended
August 31, 2022
Incredible pictures and history!!
July 2, 2019
Megan, Grottoes patron, June 2019, 4 stars:
Good book about the history of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Short and not overly detailed, but it provides a brief but well written short description of the park history and many historical photographs. Good book for a quick overview of the park.
Good book about the history of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Short and not overly detailed, but it provides a brief but well written short description of the park history and many historical photographs. Good book for a quick overview of the park.
November 17, 2020
Not so much about the park itself as the communities surrounding the area before it became a park. I bought this book at the Visitor Center on the North Carolina side, but there seemed to be more of a focus on the Tennessee side. Interesting to see photos of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge before they became nasty tourist traps.
November 20, 2024
For what it is, a history of the GSMNP, it is a good book. Plenty of black and white photos detailing the history of the park and concise text filling in many detail (too many for my taste but I am sure for others it might be just right or even not enough). A dash of color might have been nice but that's a small thing.
April 19, 2019
Very interesting and informative. Learned some things I never knew and saw some awesome old photos!
January 13, 2016
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Images of America: Tennessee) by Steve Cotham (Arcadia Publishing 2006)(976.889). This is a volume from the popular "Images of America" series of vintage photographs. The photos contained in this book document the period prior to the formation of the national park, the struggle to acquire the land rights necessary to complete its formation, and the mountain way of life that gave way to the peace and serenity that the park is today. My rating: 7.5/10, finished 2006.
March 12, 2008
This is part of a worthy series of place profiles by Arcadia Publishing. I have about ten in the series and find new series titles always worth a look. All offer old photos and stories about an interesting area: Downtown San Jose California, San Francisco's Potrero Hill, etc. _The Great Smoky Mountains National Park_ features a chapter on Elkmont, where my Great Grandparents built a cabin before the national park was created.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews